The upcoming fixture reminds me of the time I first saw Barnsley on Match Of The Day. For the first five years MOTD only showed highlights from one game. Then, for the 1969/70 season, they started showing highlights from a second match, although these were not on as long as the first. Also, this second game tended to be regionalised. We were away at Walsall just before Christmas and this was the selected second match. Unfortunately, we lost 3-2 at the old Fellows Park. http://www.barnsley-mad.co.uk/results_service/1969_1970/20/dec/index.shtml The following season, they started showing highlights of equal length from two games and did away with the regionalisation. Sorry folk, I'm just a little bored tonight.
1969 that's when the first man stepped on the moon! Can remember watching James Burke on our little Tv
JLWBigLil - the BBS version of Mogadon! <img src ="http://www.improvehealthcare.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/mogadon.jpg">
I remember that game being on tv. The reason it was on was that there was a bad spell of snowy weather and a lot of matches were postponed, but ours at Walsall was not. It was a cracking game with some excellent goals and notably two great ones from Norman Dean, who had lost his Cardiff beer gut by then and was looking like the player we thought we had signed the season before. We had a good season and finished seventh with Johnny Evans leading scorer on fifteen and Dean and Loyden both on ten each. Attendance at Fellows Park was 4472. Our team was: Arblaster; Murphy, Booth; Bradbury, Winstanley, Howard; Dean, Robson, Loyden, Boardman, Evans. Good attacking line-up. I have never minded our losing games like that, in which both teams had played well, scored good goals and entertained everyone. Can't remember who introduced the game, but he announced Walsall v Barnsley as the second game with a hint of embarrassment as he imagined most people turning off their sets!! Good game, though.
Tha wants to get thissen one of them premium rate numbers tha`d mek a killing, a killing am tellin thi. They`d fall asleep bart purrin receiver darn. Kerching.
I'm damned certain they'd initially chosen a more enthralling match to cover (West Brom possibly?), but had to quickly find another game once the original one was called off. I was convinced we'd go up that season and firmly believe to this day that had Brian Arblaster not got injured in the home victory against Bradford City we would have. I've always blamed his replacement Brian Sharratt (sp?) for our failure!
I may be wrong, but I think all of our appearances on Match of the Day playing league matches, other than when we were in the Prem, were as the BBC's plan B, as their original choices had been snowed off.
Walsall away in the 99/00 season was the first time I ever saw us win away from home. I believe it was my 4th away match after aways at Hillsborough, Old Trafford and the Macalpine. We won 4-1, with iirc Craig Hignett scoring a hat-trick. I also think it was the first ground I've seen us win twice at. As far as I can remember I've only ever seen us with twice there and at Huddersfield. Oh and Bramall Lane. Oh and the Keepmoat. Sent from my SM-G900F using Tapatalk
That was certainly the case when we drew 2-2 with Portsmouth in the 1984/85 season. Apart from the two games mentioned, how often have we been on MOTD (Premier League season apart)?
We were on in late 1981 v QPR away, when I think it was the only game to go ahead in London because of snow. They had the artificial pitch and the ground was a stones throw from BBC TV Centre. Just those 3 on MOTD for league highlights that I know of. Fair few cup games, and I think the Man City league cup game was on Sportsnight.
QPR beat us 1-0 and the goal was a farce. It was headed down and Bobby Horn went down to smother it. On a grass surface, especially in winter the ball wouldn't have bounced like it did. It shot up off the pitch and poor Bobby could only watch in despair as the ball bounced over him and in to the back of the net.
Don't forget our FA cup games on tv. Middlesborough away in 19hundred and whenever.... 37000 at Ayrsome Park with about 12000 of us crammed into a corner. The games agin Sheff Utd, two draws and a defeat at Oakwell. Our goalie made the most pathetic attempt to keep their goal out by diving about two seconds early.... or was it late. Was it Clive Baker? Then the two agin Liverpool and Chelsea. There will be others you will name but that's my memories. I went to the QPR plastic pitch game. One of the only games on that day due to snow. We lost 1-0, no surprise there, and got back in time to watch it on MOTD.